I"m going on the Carnival Destiny in May out of San Juan. The cruise docks at 7am...we were trying to schedule a flight home and wondered how much time to give us so we don't miss our flight! Is San Juan airport easy to get to off the ship??? and how much time does it take to get all checked in etc....if anyone can help out with their opinions/experiences it would be so helpful!!

The last time I was at San Juan airport it took several hours to get from ship to boarding plain, because of the paper work. Like most of the Carnival passengers we too were fast asleep on the airport floor waiting to board.
I will be on Carnival Destiny 5-30 out of San Juan again. Looking forward to a long cruise.

I would suggest not booking any flights before noon. You never know how long it will take to get off the ship. There have been times when customs was holding things up and other times people not settling their accounts properly. No one is allowed to leave the ship until everything is alright with customs and the ships accounts.

It would be better to wait for your flight than book an early flight and miss it.

Be prepared at the San Juan airport. It is a mess. We were there in 2000 and there were only a hand full of seats. People were sitting on the floor everywhere waiting for flights. We figured they were in the middle of remodeling the airport. But recently I have been reading on the boards that the San Juan airport is still without seating. It has to be one of the worst airports I have been to.

There is also very little food or drink available at the gate areas at the airport. So you might want to plan on having some snacks and water handy or it can make for a long flight home when you only get a soda and a pack of cookies on the plane.

WHen I went on my cruise two years ago I had an early flight I believe it was 9:30am
The ship docked in San Juan @7am.
We were the first people off the ship and a few other people because we told them that our flight was at 9am. So we were considered rush passengerd
We had no problem getting off the ship. I prefer it this way so you don't have to worry about the hassle of finding your luggage and stuff like that. There is people there to help you carry your luggage to the taxi.
If you can get an early flight get it. Nothing before 9am because you will be cutting it too close. Anything after 9am is fine.
I'm going on a cruise in April I was hoping that I could get an early flight coming back home.
My flight is at 1:45pm so just imagine how much waiting I'll be doing.

Michelle, how long ago were you in San Juan ??
When we flew in and out during October 2002, there were fast food
places, ( Subway ) in the boarding area. (beyond security).
They were busy, and it took a while, but we were still on cruise ship time,
needing to eat every hour. There was no seating, & all our group was sacked
out on the floor.